Looking for info on An older square d main


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Old 03-07-16, 03:23 PM
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Looking for info on An older square d main

My house was out of power for 3 hours last wed . usually comed back with no problems.When it came back on, the worst part of this scenario was this.the main panel inside the wall..ended up with a dead leg on one side , Therefore i have been given info that it should be changed ,,panel and all.This would be a case for my "house insurance" i would think.This has to have a new panel do to the age of it. New guts and wire up to the weather head , which the insulation is gone on the incoming leads, to the main disconnect. I am thinking the right way on this?/ am i not? any help or opinions ,from other such cases out there. would be good, or am i barking up the wrong tree. I don't think so, your opinion, if you have had this problem.or close to it, would be greatly appreciated. thanks for looking bob s

ps the back surging of this breaker going bad caused damage to other parts of the normal circuit needing a electrician.

This thread relates to this thread.... http://www.doityourself.com/forum/el...ghts-work.html
 

Last edited by PJmax; 03-07-16 at 04:49 PM. Reason: added thread link
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Old 03-07-16, 03:57 PM
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First thing I would have done is call the power company ASAP and had them check there side of the power coming in.
Sounds like a dropped neutal wire that can distroy anything plugged in at the time.
 
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Old 03-07-16, 04:22 PM
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Has an electrician looked at this or is this your assumption?
 
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Old 03-07-16, 04:25 PM
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A panel change out would only be needed if there is damage to the panel due to the poor connection. Very rarely have I seen homeowners insurance pay for a panel change.
 
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Old 03-07-16, 05:13 PM
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Electrician coming in the morning, My assumption which if he thinks the same ,My insurance should cover it or part there of. bob

You are probably right tolyn bob s
 
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Old 03-09-16, 09:09 AM
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ps the back surging of this breaker going bad caused damage to other parts of the normal circuit needing a electrician.
Back surging?? What in the heck is that?

Very rarely have I seen homeowners insurance pay for a panel change.
I agree that would be very rare, but I have seen it once. That one time was when a GE panel caught on fire at the bus connection to a Type THQP (thin) breaker.
 
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Old 03-09-16, 11:47 AM
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My insurance covered a complete panel replacement and circuit test when we took a lightning strike and everything inside the panel was burned or melted. City inspector or fire chief kept the old panel for demonstration purposes. Doesn't sound like your issue here but it does happen.
 
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Old 03-10-16, 04:59 AM
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Yes pjaffe Insurance will cover THAT---- lightening strike.Mine has just grown to OLD.So i am out of luck on insurance!! .....that figures aayy?

ps; i found my phone answering machine did not work properly yesterday, MAN! i gotta be about done losing money on this Deal;pretty soon,This Gets old fast -when these appliances keep going bad when they feel like it. Oh well!! i'll keep replacing things til its over"and it all works again.is what it is" as my oldest son says. bob s
 
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Old 03-11-16, 06:13 PM
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ps the back surging of this breaker going bad caused damage to other parts of the normal circuit needing a electrician.

Back surging?? What in the heck is that?
Is back surging something you invented to justify in your own mind what has happened?
 
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Old 03-12-16, 05:18 AM
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You evidently Casual joe, are not aware of what electricity can do,and may do. This term is etched in stone, electricty. will find another path many of times, if the source they are intended to go,,suddenly isn't there at the now.It is called surging or back charging etc.Very real and damages appliances and so on.enough where it took a week before all of my problems showed up,The last item that was damaged in my home was the phone answering machine, found it yesterday week and a half later. No JOE surging is. the word used for this hth bob s
 
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Old 03-13-16, 05:53 PM
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I am not denying that you have a problem, but back surging?? Come on now. Initially you had said:

My house was out of power for 3 hours last wed . usually comed back with no problems.When it came back on, the worst part of this scenario was this.the main panel inside the wall..ended up with a dead leg on one side
If your panel has a dead leg and especially after a storm, you probably have a utility connection problem. It could be at the transformer or the service connection or at the weatherhead, but not likely under these circumstances to be a fault in the meter socket or panel itself. It could be a fault in the socket or panel, but that would be a real conincidence for it to show up just as power was restored. When power is restored it is not unusual to have a few initial surges, but it takes sophisticated equipment to actually read them.

Therefore i have been given info that it should be changed ,,panel and all.
That is a definite possibility, but no one on this forum is qualified to make that determination without inspecting the panel. There may be other things wrong with the panel that contributed to the person's opinion that it should be replaced. Whether or not your insurance will pay for upgrading your service is something the insurance adjuster will determine when you file a claim. Maybe they will and maybe they won't.

i found my phone answering machine did not work properly yesterday
When exactly did it stop working? I suspect any surges that may have come through when power was restored could have caused this. Surges during electrical storms are quite common and sometimes cause damage to electronic items that doesn't show up right away.
 
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Old 03-14-16, 05:23 AM
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About 2 weeks now but not quite.The power company sent out a seasoned veteran- o/s troubles.But i tested the leg and so did he. IT definitley is the leg,--- as per My voltage testor and his.It was i who jammed the 200 amp switck back and fort 3-4 times off and on. Juice came back on No trouble with it now I think i am going to find a new or good used 200 amp breaker and rebuild this one. The last guy tp look at it {electrician}He says Man who ever built this powe panel DID IT RIGHT steel piping.These guys all lave and non of them have gotten back yet with a quote. Like i say i want it repaired but i don't wish to "hock"{ my wife and dog] to do so.

In answer .my problem is on my side, thanks joe
 
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Old 03-14-16, 08:38 AM
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In this case the problem is very likely to be one or both of: 1) the main breaker is bad; 2) the stab or connection point where the main breaker attached to the bus is bad.

The way to approach it depends on an in person inspection and the exact model number of the breaker and box. If it is a common breaker and the bus connections are still good, this should be a pretty standard main breaker swap for an electrician ~ probably a few hundred bucks total (service call rate plus about $150 for the breaker)

If the bus has gone bad, you will probably have to replace the entire panel. A panel swap without replacing any other components of the service entrance is usually in the ballpark of $1000.

If it is an odd or out of production breaker, you may have to replace the entire panel or wait a while for a special order. Sometimes the odd breakers are so expensive when you do locate one it makes sense to just replace the panel.
 
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Old 03-14-16, 02:16 PM
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What odd or out of production square-d breakers? Aren't QO breakers (even mains) unchanged from the introduction in 1955? (excluding the two types of tandem QO breakers)

Square-d QO breakers have a lifetime warranty. Call and get a replacement if it's bad. Or, pay $55 at HD for a 100/125 amp QO main.

(I'm assuming it's a QO or QOB panel, as an old Square-d panel will be 99% of the time.)
 
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Old 03-15-16, 08:00 AM
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Some very good points have been made here since last nite. Iam taking them with a serious consideration- on this repair job. thank you very very much bob s
 
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Old 03-15-16, 10:37 AM
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where does one look for the mentioned...QO..QOB NUMBERS? THANKS BOB
 
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Old 03-15-16, 10:51 AM
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It will be stamped, printed or on a label somewhere on the box. Sometimes on the panel cover, sometimes in the back of the box, sometimes on the breaker itself. Q0 is one of the product lines made by Square D. The breaker and panel should still have a full part number somewhere on the device.
 
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Old 03-15-16, 02:58 PM
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The power company sent out a seasoned veteran- o/s troubles.But i tested the leg and so did he. IT definitley is the leg,--- as per My voltage testor and his.It was i who jammed the 200 amp switck back and fort 3-4 times off and on. Juice came back on
Ok, what side of the breaker were you checking when you found a dead leg? If you were checking at the main lugs on the "LINE" side of the main breaker and found a dead leg the problem is ahead of that and could be in the socket, at the utility connection or on the utility lines after the transformer. Switching the main breaker back and forth wouldn't change anything. If you found the dead leg after the main breaker on the "LOAD" side and the "LINE" side was good, you have a bad main breaker.

What odd or out of production square-d breakers? Aren't QO breakers (even mains) unchanged from the introduction in 1955?
QO circuit breakers carry a lifetime warranty, but older Square D QO loadcenters didn't use a QO series main breaker. They were much larger and were a vertically operating breaker. I am not sure what QO loadcenters are using as a main breaker today, but suspect it still isn't a QO series breaker. When the Homeline series was introduced they used a larger main breaker too, but today they use a backfed Homeline branch breaker as a main breaker.

1) the main breaker is bad; 2) the stab or connection point where the main breaker attached to the bus is bad.
In an older Square D QO loadcenter it wouldn't be a stab, it would be a bolted connection between the main breaker and the bus.

where does one look for the mentioned...QO..QOB NUMBERS? THANKS BOB
As others have said, there should be a label on the main breaker with fine print with all the numbers. I seriously doubt you'll see a "QO" or a "QOB". QOB is just the prefix for a QO series bolt-in branch breaker.


Here's an idea for you, but you must confirm you have a bad main breaker first. Square D QO loadcenters have had a lifetime warranty for as long as I can remember. I'd recommend contacting Square D and asking them what you need to do to have the loadcenter or main breaker replaced. I would get their reaction and comments and go from there.
 
 

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